According to sources, Amazon is all set to compete with Google and Apple in the smartphone market by developing their own device in partnership with Foxconn. Currently, Nokia, Microsoft, Sony, Apple and Samsung are a few of Foxconn’s customers.
Amazon’s device will compete with Apple’s iPhone and devices running on Google’s Android. Introducing their own smartphone will help Amazon earn revenue from services offered by them like digital books, movies and songs through devices that are low priced. Amazon could find itself a niche in the market for advanced wireless devices even as Apple and Samsung dominate the business, managing to ship 398.4 million smartphones already in the first quarter of this year. Amazon’s spokesman, Drew Herdener, did not comment on the issue.
Apart from developing a smartphone, Amazon is also looking at acquiring patents regarding the wireless technology. This move will certainly help Amazon defend itself against allegations of infringement by other companies, a common occurrence in the smartphone market in recent times. Amazon was planning on buying wireless patents from InterDigital. However, this was before King of Prussia, a company based in Pennsylvania, decided to sell the assets for $375 million to Intel Corp. Amazon is now considering other sellers, according to sources. With Matt Gordon becoming the general manager for patent acquisitions and investments at Amazon, the company seems to have strengthened their patent prowess. Amazon is already a part of five patent related cases this year and 20 cases in the previous year.
Analysts had earlier spoken of Amazon working with Foxconn on a smartphone in November last year, hoping to release it in the fourth quarter of this year. If Amazon is looking to compete with Apple, they are going to have to introduce a Kindle smartphone or a similar device soon. Apart from the smartphone, Amazon is working on the release of their next generation of Kindle Fire in the tablet market, which is expected to give tough competition to the iPad and the Nexus 7 tablet which was recently introduced at Google’s I/O event. In the field of applications, Amazon’s Android Appstore, Google’s Play Store and Apple’s App Store are looking to compete with each other, focusing on establishing their dominance over the mobile market.
